Researchers say IBM Summit supercomputer identified 77 drugs that potentially could combat the coronavirus
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – A supercomputer used by scientists to determine ways to combat the coronavirus outbreak reportedly has identified 77 drugs that could potentially help stop the spread. The Washington Examiner reports. Continue reading original article
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
26 March 2020 -- Researchers at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn., published results this week from a project that enlisted the help of an IBM supercomputer named Summit, which helped identify the most effective existing drugs that potentially could combat the coronavirus.
The research focuses on the method the COVID-19 coronavirus uses to cling to cells via a spike protein. Summit used an algorithm to determine which drugs could bind to the protein and prevent the virus from doing what it wants.
"Our results don’t mean that we have found a cure or treatment for the coronavirus," says Jeremy Smith, one of the co-authors of the research. "We are very hopeful, though, that our computational findings will both inform future studies and provide a framework that experimentalists will use to further investigate these compounds. Only then will we know whether any of them exhibit the characteristics needed to mitigate this virus."
John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics
